Campaigners have told supporters “not to panic”, as they believe the structure’s stanchions as still solid. Engineers from Conwy Council are carrying out an assessment, so it can be decided what to do next. Work on the pier will be planned around low tide.

Half the decking at the end of the Pier was rotten has fallen into the sea taking with it the balustrade.

The Trust say they had warned Conwy council of the possibility of this happening for years and believe the balustrade should have been removed and put into storage.

The local authority has been carrying out a structural survey on the Pier since last Autumn and have offered to share this with the Trust once completed.

Experts inspect Colwyn Bay's Victoria Pier after a part of it collapsed (Image: David Powell)

But the Trust is also intent on carrying out an independent survey as stipulated by the Welsh Government, and have been trying to gain

access to the Pier since last Summer but have so far been thwarted by the Council. The last two meetings scheduled between the Trust and Conwy officers have also been cancelled, further frustrating matters.

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Pat Owen a director of the Trust said: “When I suddenly received all these messages yesterday about the Pier, I was panicking, but when I saw the damage my heart lifted somewhat as it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.

“Over the last couple of years bits have been ground off from the cross section of the structure and one has to wonder if this weakened it, Conwy said it was for safety reasons.”

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Pat continued: “I just wish now with all this publicity that Conwy council will realise how strongly residents feel about trying to save it.

“I’m hoping they will work with us as partners.

“It’s annoying when meetings are cancelled, and not allowing us to gain access.

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“The good news is everything salvageable will have to be stored by the Council to be used at a later date, as it’s a listed building.”

The next meeting between the Trust and Conwy is scheduled for next week.

The Grade II-listed pier has been at the centre of a long-running legal battle about its ownership since it closed in July 2008. Two years ago, the Welsh Government rejected plans by Conwy County Council to demolish it. It’s understood the Council is set to apply next month for listed demolition consent.